


Purple

by Lady_Zola



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell (Undertale), Bit of Bad Brother AU, Caring UF!Papyrus, M/M, Only Applies to Tale Papyrus though, Past Mentions of Abuse, Past Mentions of Abuse Due to Disability/Illness, Protective UF!Papyrus, Sans has Narcolepsy, Sans has chronic fatigue, Some Tags Might Change Later, UF!Papyrus, UF!Papyrus has Autism/Aspergers, UF!Sans
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-05
Updated: 2018-11-05
Packaged: 2019-08-19 08:10:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16530755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Zola/pseuds/Lady_Zola
Summary: I'm not very good at doing descriptions, so this is basically something I whipped up on the fly. It's basically a Kustard fanfic (UT!Sans ends up in Underfell) with a bit of the bad brother au (only applies to tale papyrus though). I'm not sure I want to include Tale Papyrus yet. This also has past mentions of abuse in it, so if that triggers you, I don't recommend reading it. (Copied this over here from my Quotev account)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Alright; This is my first post on here. Just a warning, the first couple chapters are poorly written in my opinion, but right now I don't know how to make them sound better so for now they're just going to have to stay like that

It had always been the lame same excuses. 'I fell down the stairs.', 'I tripped.'. Things like that. This time, his brother had given Sans a pretty bad blow to the head, and had left him out by the big purple door for him to be someone else's problem. That's when Red found him. Oh gosh... When he had woken up on their couch, in the very same house he'd been hit in, it caused for a bit of panic. What was his brother going to say? Was Sans being a burden? He didn't know, and didn't want to know.

Hearing the footsteps in the kitchen did nothing to soothe his nerves. If anything, it made it worse. Exiting the kitchen, was a skeleton that looked very similar to Sans, but bigger. He had a black jacket, and wore the same shorts that he wore, and had an ice pack in his hands.

Why would he be in a house with strangers? What even happened??  
"Who- What- I?". The bigger skeleton rolled his red eyelights in annoyance. "I found you outside th' ruins door. 'm not one to rescue people, but I couldn't just leave a pathetic fop out to be killed by someone else." As the redder skeleton approached with the ice pack in hand, Sans also happened to notice a purple pill bottle being held underneath the ice pack, which only alarmed him more.

"C'mon, 's just an ice pack." Sans wasn't buying it all. Instead, reading too much into it, he pointed at the pill bottle in his doppelganger's hand, who sighed, before putting the pills down on the floor next to where he was standing. Then walking forward towards the couch again. He held his hand out for Sans to take the ice pack, but he didn't. The bigger one moved the ice pack over to the injured spot on Sans' head. "Hold it here." He did as he was told, reaching up and grabbing ahold the ice pack as the other let go, and holding it there.

The other skeleton walked back over to pick up the pill bottle before turning to look at Sans. "These pills are pain killers. That's all they do. 'm gonna get some water for ya so you can take a couple of 'em, alright? An' you can call me Red, considerin' everyone else does." After he had finished speaking, Red walked back into the kitchen, and Sans could hear the door of something, most likely a cabinet door, open and the clicking of glasses, one glass specifically, followed by the faucet running a few moments after.

While waiting for Red to return, Sans pulled his legs up to his chest. He didn't want to be here, even if the person living here was trying to help him. He was considering running out the door, when he heard a glass smash in the kitchen followed by swear words. To be specific, it was the word 'Shit' three times over. 

Sans considered getting off the couch, but at that moment, Red had returned into the living room looking quite pissed, with the pill bottle in his hand, as well as his foot having a piece of glass stuck in the bone. Sans started shaking, and as he got closer, shrank in on himself. Red opened the pill bottle and poured out two white pills into his red, gloved hands. "Here. That was th' last clean glass, so you'll just have ta' swallow 'em without any water. Sorry 'bout that." Sans hesitated for a second, not sure if he should really trust this stranger. Red moved his hand closer to Sans' face, a little irritated. "Take 'em." This time, he took the pills from him, and he put them in his mouth. It took Sans a minute to swallow them, since they were unchewed, and he had a hard time swallowing unchewed things without some kind of drink. Or without his brother to force them down his throat.

Red turned around and pulled the glass out of his own foot, hissing in pain as he did. Then, he started to walk back into the kitchen, when Sans spoke, "What do you want from me?"


	2. Chapter 2

Red's eye lights went out. "Fucking- What? You think I want something from you?!" Sans nodded his head in response. "No one would help _me_ unless they wanted something from me... So what is it?"

"Buddy, if I wanted somethin' from ya, I woulda woulda asked for it before helping you."

He let his hand drop away from the ice pack, and it fell onto the couch, which caused Red to snap at him. "Keep the ice pack on there, dumbass. It's the only thing keepin' that bruise from gettin' worse!" Sans flinched back when he yelled, and he noticed immediately, toning down his voice. "Listen, I'm just tryin' t' be nice; for once. Jus' keep the ice pack there. Please?" Sans hesitated, and put the ice pack back on the hurt spot, and Red spoke, "Thank you.. Now, 'm gonna clean up this mess in the' kitchen, you wait here." He went back into the kitchen, and grabbed the broom from the corner of the room, and started sweeping the glass into a pile in the center of the kitchen.

Red then got the dustpan and swept the pieces of glass into it, before dumping it all into the garbage can, and putting everything back in its place. He returned to the living room and saw that Sans was still sitting on his couch. When Sans saw him, he curled in on himself, still holding the ice pack against his injury. Good. Red went over to the couch and sat down on the opposite side of it, trying to avoid making Sans uncomfortable. "So, uh... What's yer name, exactly? Gotta have somethin' to call ya. Unless you'd rather be called Blue instead... Because that still I can think of.", He said. Sans turned his head to look at him. "I-It's Sans- Aw sh-shit wait- What time is it?!" 

"It's uh..." Red checked his watch. "...5:15 am."

Sans looked confused. "A....m...? It's m-morning?"

He nodded his head. "Yeah. Normally I'd be doing my mornin' patrols by now but that was when I found ya."

"Morning patrols? Like the royal guard...?"

"Yea'. Boss 's probably gonna be so pissed with me for leavin' right in th' middle of it," he shrugged "but what can ya do, right?" As soon as Red finished had a sentence, the door closest to the stairs upstairs opened, and out came a big, fluffy, white cat- Doomfanger. It walked down the stairs and over to the couch before promptly sitting down in front of it. Red paid her no mind though. "So is their anythin' ya wanna eat...? Thirsty at all? I've never had guests before, but I assume that's what yer supposed t' offer if ya have em over.."

Sans looked down at the cat, a bit more eased with her presence. "Um... D-do you have crackers..? Crackers would be nice.." He nodded his head, moving up from the couch and starting across the room towards the kitchen. Sans reached down to pet the cat, but upon touching her, Doomfanger bolted across the room, right on Red's path. Before Sans could call out a warning, Red flew to the ground with flying colors and a loud shriek. He had to cover his mouth to stop himself from laughing at Red's blunder with the cat but to top it all off, the fluffy white cat walked over to Red, and sat on his back.

"Get offa me ya fluffy white bitch!" He exclaimed. He would've just sat up and let the cat fall off, but this was his brother's cat. If anything happened to his brother's cat, he'd be a dead man. So instead, he waited for her to get off on her own. But his shouting seemed to silence the smaller skeleton, his breathing going a bit rougher, and he no longer had the urge to laugh. Red turned his head to look at him. "You alright there, bud?" Sans nodded his head. "Y-yeah, I'm okay..."

"Alright... Hey, can you come get Doomfanger off me? She's kinda heavy" Red asked. Sans got off the couch and put the ice pack on it, before moving over to them and lifting the cat off of him. He was right, she was heavy. He set Doomfanger down on the floor next to him, and he sat up before getting off the floor. "Thanks. I guess I'll go get you those crackers now, then we can probably get you home, yeah?" Sans frowned at the thought of going home, but he didn't argue. "Yeah, I guess. Is it okay if I come into the kitchen with you?"

"Nah I don't mind. C'mon." He motioned for Sans to follow as he walked into it, and he followed, looking around the kitchen upon entering it, he seemed surprised by its appearance. "Your kitchen looks... exactly like mine?" Red turned to look at him. "Exactly like yours?"

"Yeah, even the living room looks the same." When Sans said this, something clicked in Red's brain. He'd heard something about alternate universes, but that was kind of a jump-to conclusion to make. But he did look exactly like him. Then again, he's heard of monsters having someone who wasn't related to them look just like them, but that's pretty rare, so he wasn't sure. He'd need more info, so he decided that it'd be best to ask questions first, so he hoped he wouldn't prod too deep into uncomfortable territory.

Red decided to make small talk as he fixed the crackers. "So..." he said, grabbing the box of saltines from the cabinet, "Do ya have any siblings?" Right off the bat, Sans' demeanor changed to something frightened. Shit. "Well, I do have a brother. Couldn't ask for a better one!.." That was... not the answer he was expecting, especially with that posture change. Red decided to poke a bit further. "What's his name?" He asked as he poured out several handfuls of crackers onto a paper plate he retrieved from the stack of them on the counter.

"I-it's Papyrus.." Sans said, shuffling his back and forth. So his brother's name was Papyrus? There's another bit of proof he needed though. He picked up the plate of crackers and walked out of the kitchen, motioning for Sans to follow him, and he did. "What's your room like?" He asked as he sat down on the couch. Sans waited until he sat back down on it, moving the icepack to the arm of the chair. "I just have a mattress and a dresser."

"Where are they located in the room?"

Sans thought that question was a bit...questionable. But he answered it anyway. "Well, the mattress is located in the top right corner of the room, and the dresser is on the top left." Just like Red's room, this had to be it. He knew it wasn't really enough evidence to go on, but he just had the feeling. "Okay... Do you believe in alternate universes, Sans?" He asked as he handed him the plate of crackers. Sans nodded his head as he took it from him, a smile tugging at his face. "Yeah. I'm in one now, aren't I? Is that was you were asking those questions?" Red had a dusty red color spread across his cheeks, but only because he was embarrassed for whatever dumb fucking reason. "Uh yeah... You do know how to get back home though, right?" He shook his head at this. "No, I don't."

"Well then, I guess you'll just have to stay here for a lil bit. If you're okay with that, that is." Sans put a cracker in his mouth and thought about it for a moment before nodding his head, speaking with his mouth full of food. "I'm okay with that if you're okay with that." Red was definitely okay with that, for some reason. "Alright. You can take my bed, and I'll take the couch. I sleep on it all the time"


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gonna figure out how to post in italics at some point-

Red had forgotten to tell Papyrus why he wasn't patrolling, he realized. But it wasn't until he saw him pass by the window that he remembered. Red had a conversation with Sans, who had fallen asleep right in the middle of their conversation. It happened slowly, even while Sans was talking.

Red prepared himself for his brother to start yelling when he heard the door slam open, which immediately woke up Sans, who had a look of alarm on his face. "RED!"

Aw shit.

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU SKIP YOUR PATROL  _AGAIN?!_  JUST SO YOU COULD COME BACK TO THE HOUSE AND BE LAZY?! IT'S LIKE YOU WANT TO LOSE YOUR JOB! I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH LONGER I CAN KEEP CONVINCING UNDYNE THAT YOU'RE ACTUALLY D-..." Papyrus paused when he saw the stranger on his couch, and now that he had stopped yelling, you could hear Sans's quiet sobs as he was curled in on himself. Red snapped his head in Sans's direction to look at him. " _That's_  why I skipped my patrol today."

Red scooted across the couch and gently put a hand on Sans's shoulder, which made him flinch. "Man, you  _really_ don't like yellin', do ya?" Sans shook his head in response.

"Who the fuck is that?" Papyrus asked, speaking in a quieter tone. Red gently stroked Sans's arm as he spoke. "This is, uh, Sans. Fr-from another universe Sans, I mean." He was so glad his brother understood the alternate universes, but he still seemed shocked. "I found 'im outside the Ruins door, unconscious. He took a pretty bad blow to the head. I was feelin' generous, so I helped 'im."

Sans slowly looked up from his arms to stare at Papyrus. He seemed scared. This theory was proven when Papyrus approached him, which made Sans press his back against the couch. Papyrus leaned in to examine the large, nasty bruise on the side of Sans's face, while Sans didn't move a inch, his eye lights having sputtered out. Red watched Sans's reaction. Why was he so afraid of Papyrus? Yeah, most monsters in Snowdin were, but Sans wasn't even from the same underground.

When Papyrus leaned back and up to his full height, Sans immediately clung to Red like a life line, gripping his jacket and trying to hide. That made Red jump. "What're ya doin'?!"

Immediately, Sans pulled back. "S-sorry, force of habit! Really sorry! I-I-" Suddenly Sans was crying again, shaking and looking frightened, repeating 'sorry' over and over again. Red frowned. "S'okay. You don't need to get so upset, s'okay." He reached over to gently touch Sans's arm, but Sans was quick to jump away, falling off the couch and crashing right into Papyrus, who almost fell backwards, but managed to catch him under his armpits.

Sans froze and looked up at Papyrus's irritated expression. "You do know we're not planning to hurt you, right?" Papyrus said. Red watched as Sans went a bit limp. "That d-doesn't mean you won't... I'm naturally hittable..."

Who the hell refers to themself as 'naturally hittable'???

Papyrus ungracefully tossed Sans forward and back onto the couch, and Sans's legs and arms wobbled as he caught himself, seeming to struggle with it. Immediately, he went completely limp, flopping down over the arm of the couch, panting and catching his breath. Red rolled his eyelights while Papyrus crossed his arms and stared at the small, tired skeleton.

"You tired 'er somethin'?" Red asked, staring at him. There's no way he could already be tired. He just had an hour long nap. But; Sans nodded his head. "E-exhausted...hn..." Red couldn't believe it. He himself was a lazy guy, and he took a lot of naps just for the sake of it. But he'd never been  _exhausted_  after  _just waking up_.

Sighing, Red got up from the couch and pulled Sans off of it onto his feet. Sans immediately fell over, almost bringing Red down with him, but he managed to get up very quickly. "Sorry! I-I didn't mean-"

"It's fine."

Red started pulling Sans along over to the stairs, and Papyrus watched. "Sa- Red, I need to talk to you when you come back down."

Red didn't look or verbally respond, he just nodded his head and continued bringing Sans up to his room. Soon he got there, quickly pushing the door open and shoving Sans inside, and flicking off the light switch and closing the door behind Sans once he was inside. Quietly, Red leaned against the door with his arms crossed and waited. He heard the sound of footsteps moving away from the door, and then the mattress creaking loudly. Finally. If he was being honest, Sans's weird behavior was getting on his nerves.

\---

Sans had woken up what he imagined was an hour later, probably. Though it felt like he hadn't slept at all. Exhaustion and fatigue rested in the core of his bones. He could barely move himself. He stirred a bit, then jumping when he heard another person's voice. "I see you're finally fucking awake." It was Red's brother. "I can't imagine taking a three hour long nap. You really are a copy of my brother."

Three hours? Sans turned his head to look at Papyrus and squinted, seeing his silloette in the dark room. "Have... Have you been here in the dark the whole time?" He asked cautiously.

"Of course! While my brother is out working,  _someone_  has to make sure you don't fucking burglarize our house. If you're even capable of doing it at all. Now get up and come out of the room. I'm bored as fuck."

Sans tried his best to follow the order, but he couldn't pull himself up without putting a painful strain on himself. He could hear the other skeleton sigh in annoyance. "I said, get up."

Sans whimpered. "I-I can't."

"Why the fuck not?!"

"I'm just so tired. I'm s-sorry!" Sans was crying again, trying his best to pull himself up, but to no avail. "I-I'm trying! I swear I'm trying, Paps! Please don't punish me I'm s-so sorry!"

Papyrus was almost shocked. Punish him?! And he called him Paps... His own brother hadn't even called him that in ages. He suddenly felt a strong sense of pity, and approached the mattress stiffly. Sans's crying grew harder as Papyrus crouched down next to the mattress, his face becoming visible in the dull light from the window. Sans cringed, expecting Papyrus to hit him.

"Why are you so exhausted, Sans?"

Sans paused. Was this a trick? He slowly opened his eye sockets and looked up at Papyrus, who was sporting a surprisingly soft expression. Sans's voice cracked. "Chr...Chronic Fatigue."

Papyrus frowned. Chronic Fatigue, huh? He changed his position from crouching to sitting. "Is it bad?"

"Yes... I can't go for walks outside my house without getting s-so tired that I just fall over..."

Sans watched with fear as Papyrus slowly reached his hand out to his face. Instead of hurting him, though, Papyrus gently cupped his cheek with his hand, gently rubbing the bone with his thumb. Sans sniffled, and more tears started pouring down his face again as he crying continued. "M-my brother just gets so mad at me! I'm just so fucking lazy!"

"You have a chronic illness. You're not lazy."

Sans sobbed harder. Why was Papyrus being so nice to him? Why wasn't he yelling at him? Why wasn't he hitting him? And why was he being so nice to a complete stranger? He was so confused!

Papyrus moved his hand away. "You can go back to sleep, if you wish." Sans watched as he pulled out his phone. "I'll be right here."


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When you have ADHD-C you can only write so much at one time before you have to go bounce off the walls

When Red came home, he expected his brother and Sans to at least be somewhere besides his bedroom. Red went to check his own bedroom, and saw that neither of them were there. So he went to his brother's room, knocking on the door.

"Boss? You in there?"

"Yes. Come in."

His brother sounded unusually calm. Slowly, Red opened the door. The room was mostly dark, only the corner being lit from where Papyrus was sitting in his chair, looking at his phone.

"Is Sans in here???" Red asked. "He wasn't in my room."

Papyrus simply nodded his head. "Your mattress is really shitty."

Red paused. "...And what does that have to do with-"

"I brought him in here because he was really uncomfortable on your mattress! We really need to get you a new one anyway. And... an actual fucking bed frame?"

Red rolled his eye lights. "Bedframes are for losers."

"But they're better than getting off the floor."

Red was about to make a retort about how he didn't fucking need a bedframe, and that he prefers getting off the floor, when Papyrus's mattress made a slight creaking sound. They both turned to his bed and saw Sans stirring, stretching his arms and slowly pushing himself up from the mattress to look at them both.

"I see your fatigue is a bit better." Papyrus said flatly. Sans nodded his head. "Mhm... 'm still exhausted though... Do you want me to get up?"

Papyrus nodded. "I think it would be best for you to move a bit."

Red looked confused, but mostly because his brother was being so nice to a stranger so quickly. "Did somethin' happen?" Red asked, watching Sans slowly get up from the bed.

"Yes. Eariler, when Sans woke up, he was so exhausted and fatigued that he could not even lift himself. I had him go back to sleep, and during that period, he kept slipping in and out of consciousness, which only stopped and allowed him to sleep soundly once I moved him to  _an actual bed_ , with my weighted blanket, of course."

Red sighed. "Yeah, that happens to me too when I sleep on my bed."

"Mattress." Papyrus corrected. "Which is why you need a new one."

Man, his brother was back to focusing on his mattress again.

Papyrus stood up and put his phone in sleep mode. "I'm going to make lunch. I want you and Sans on the couch while you wait."

Red blinked, processing what Papyrus had said. He actually wasn't trying to force Red to help him? "Um... A'ight."

They both watched as Sans left the room to go downstairs, and before Red could turn around and leave, Papyrus put a hand on his shoulder. "Make sure he knows about the recliner, alright?"

Once Edge got a response from Red, a simple nod, Edge was quick to teleport out of the house, something he never did unless he wanted to be really quick about something. Red frowned. Why was his brother fretting over a complete fucking stranger?

Teleporting downstairs, he startled his smaller copy, who was already sitting on the couch. Red flopped down onto said couch. "It reclines. There's a handle on the side of it." He stated simply. Sans paused, before reaching down the side awkwardly to find the handle and pull it. The leg rest popped out as the back of couch in his spot leaned back some. Sans sighed and leaned back, sinking down into it and resting his arms over his stomach, already looking sleepy.

"The hell you so tired for?" Red asked, and Sans just smiled sadly. "Excessive daytime sleepiness, I guess."

Red paused.

"But does that mean yer tired even when ya wake up???"

A simple nod was the other's response.

Red rolled his eye lights and fished the remote out from between the couch cushions, and tossed it to Sans, who almost dropped it when he caught it. "Well, you can watch the TV while I take a nap of my own, if ya wanna." He smiled lopsidedly. "Gotta do  _somethin'_  while waitin' on my brother."

Red's statement made Sans giggle a bit. "I wish I could take naps just for the sake of it, rather than actually needing them.

Red scooted over to where Sans was sitting and pulled the remote out of his hands and set it on his lap. "Well how about you take a nap right now just for the sake of it, then? Or would you rather just watch the TV?"

Sans genuinely looked confused. These people were actually telling him to sleep if he needed it, or even wanted to, rather than screaming at him to get up. It was nice, and he hoped it lasted. He found himself closing his eyes, letting out a long sigh as he turned over onto his side, facing Red's direction. He heard Red chuckle and flop back on to the rest of the couch. "Nap time it is then."

\---

When the front door opened, Sans jolted awake, quickly looking over at the door. Papyrus, not his own brother, thank fuck, had come through the front door making weird noises with his mouth, a small smile on his face. Clicking his magic tongue, he went into the kitchen and out of Sans' view.

Sans sat up slowly, yawning and stretching his arms. He still felt tired. God dammit. No amount of sleep was ever enough. Not if his chronic illnesses had anything to say about it. Normally, his brother's... motivation would be enough to get him up and going, despite being so exhausted all the time. There had been several times where his brother had made him go out for a walk. Just to waterfall and back. 'It shouldn't be hard!'

But it was.

His fatigue seemed to be worse by the end of each little walk, and had showed no signs of getting better soon. It'd take him a month at least to recover the energy he had lost. He was tired of it.

Both figuratively and literally.

And no one seemed to understand how frustrating it can be! You want to get up and do things! Go for a run! Exercise! Stay awake the whole day without fucking accidentally falling asleep.

Sans let out a whimper of frustration, and he realized he had been crying, and Papyrus, apparently upon hearing him, peeked his head in. "Sans? Are you alright?"

Sans wanted to wave him off, but that would be bad. "Yeah, I'm fine... Just frustrated that I'm so tired." He said.

Papyrus paused. "...How about you come in here with me? Standing might wake you up a little? I know I said I wanted both of you on the couch, but you know."

Sans nodded reluctantly, reaching over to pull the bar on the side of the couch to pull in the recliner. He got up and stretched some, his legs a bit wobbly and sore as he made his way over to the kitchen.

As he entered, he saw Papyrus seasoning some meat. It looked like steak? But Sans wasn't very good at identifying meats, so he wasn't sure. He walked over to the counter and stood next to Papyrus, laying his head down on the counter. "Did you want me to help?" Sans asked quietly.

Papyrus shook his head. "No! I don't need help at all! But thank you for the offer!"

Offer? Sans legitimately thought Papyrus wanted him to help.

They stood in silence for a few minutes, Sans watching Papyrus work with the meat, and Papyrus looking like he was trying to find conversation, before he started tapping the toe of his boot against the floor.

Soon, he put the meat on the tray and turned on the oven, then shoved the tray onto the rack inside the over and closed it. Sans was wondering why he hadn't decided to preheat it but, but chose to not question it, out of fear of Papyrus getting upset.

"We can go back out into the living room now, if you want to."

Sans sat up, nodded his head, and pushed himself off the counter. Papyrus started to walk back into the living room, when he paused and turned his head around to look at Sans, and then looked down at his wobbly legs. "Did standing help wake you up a bit?" He asked.

"A little..." Sans replied gingerly. "My legs are really tired, though..."

' _LAZY!_ '

"Hmm... Alright! Let's go and sit on the couch, then!" Papyrus responded, and strode out of the kitchen. Sans took a moment to be dumbfounded before following him into the living room. He watched as Papyrus lifted up Red's legs and moved them off the couch before dropping them off, causing the rest of Red to fall off the couch, which made him wake up with a jolt.

"What the hell, boss?!" Red watched as Papyrus sat in the middle of the couch. "Your ass was in the way." Papyrus responded, smirking as he folded his arms over his chest. Red grumbled to himself as he climbed back up onto the couch, and Sans cautiously walked over to the couch and sat back in the spot he was in before.

They only had a moment of silence before Red spoke again. "Hope ya don't burn th' food again." He said. There wasn't any malicious intent behind it, though. It sounded more like playful banter. Papyrus flicked Red's nasal cavity bridge. "At least I try to cook instead of just defaulting to that grease trap."

"It's good food!"

"It. Is. Terrible."

Sans watched as their bickering continued, actually feeling a bit nervous. But they didn't seem to be getting physical with their argument, like Sans and his own brother would have. Shit, his brother really would be pissed when he came back. Either because he didn't come back ASAP, or because he came back at all.

He felt his soul constrict tightly with anxiety, and his breathing hitched. Neither of the other two seemed to notice, though. Slowly, Sans sank into the couch. He couldn't stop thinking.

He felt something fuzzy brush up against his leg, and looked down to find Doomfanger. He wasn't sure if Red had told him the cat's name or not, but he somehow knew it. The cat jumped up into his lap, and pressed her face against his, and Sans nuzzled back. She was really cute.

He gently pet her, stroking from her head and down her back, and running her tail between his grasp. Her purrs made Sans smile happily, and he felt his anxiety begin to ease as he focused on her.

"Y-your cat's wonderful." Sans said quietly, not expecting the two to hear him. But they both heard him, pausing their conversation, and looking at Sans and the cat.

"Of course! She is the best comfort pet I could ever ask for! She helps with anxiety! Like one of those service dogs, BUT BETTER!!! Because she's a cat." Papyrus was smiling proudly, and they could both hear Red snicker.

"Yeah, she's a good cat when she's not being a lil shit." Red said.

Papyrus ignored him, reaching over to pet Doomfanger, who had now settled in Sans' lap. Sans took a moment of debate before speaking. "She _is_ a good cat for soothing anxiety... I was feeling anxious and she just kinda came over here..."

He didn't miss the way Papyrus frowned, but it was Red who asked the question he was expecting.

"Why were ya feelin' anxious?" He leaned over around Papyrus and Sans noted a genuine look of concern on his face.

Sans rolled his shoulders at looked at him, still petting Doomfanger. "Well, my brother's probably really worried and upset right now..."

' _Upset_ '.

"And he's probably gonna-... be really upset with me because I worried him so much."

Silence.

Then Papyrus smiled. "What is your brother like? I'm interested in hearing about what this other version of me is like! Surely he is just as great!"

Papyrus' words made Sans giggle. "He is. He mainly does all the house work because I can't, though I still try to! I just can't really get anything done for the rest of the day after that. He motivates me to get up and go for walks n stuff..." 

"Oh! He sounds like a very good brother!"

Sans felt the tears well up in his eye socket as he looked down at the couch. "Y-yeah... He is."

Now it was obvious Red's brother thought nothing of Sans' reaction, and got up to go check on the food. But Red thought something of it, staring at the skeleton on the other side of the couch, and watched as Sans' awkwardly folded his hands in his lap as the cat decided she was done with Sans and had gotten up to follow Papyrus.

Red started to scoot over to the middle of the couch so he could be next to Sans and properly ask him if he was okay, when he heard Papyrus angrily yelling from the kitchen. Apparently, he had somehow managed to already burn the food. Even though it didn't even have that much time to cook.

He watched as Sans' hands flew up to his own arms and grip them, his head flying up from looking at the couch to look at the kitchen entrance. He looked terrified, like he was fighting down a fight or flight response.

What was he supposed to do about that?

Hug him?

You can't hug a total stranger.

...

"Sans?" Red said, staring at him. Sans turned his head quickly to look at the other, his entire frame quaking for a few moments as he pushed down a sob.

Red laughed awkwardly, in more of a sympathetic way than anything else. "You, uh, look terrified right now."

Yeah that's kinda obvious.

When the clattering in the kitchen made Sans jump, Red cringed, and slowly opened his arms up in sort of an offer of a hug, he supposed. What the fuck was he doing with his arms? There was no way Sans was going to hug a total stranger.

Sans stared at Red's chest for a few moments, and when Red had started to put his hands down, Sans practically leapt away from the couch at his movement. The other was up the stairs in an instant, and he was moving somewhat slow, what Red assumed to be his version of a run. Before he could jump off the couch to say anything, Sans ran into Red's room, slamming the door behind him.

The slam caused Papyrus to speed walk back into the living room. "Why did I hear a door slam?!"

"...I think we scared 'im." Red stated.

Papyrus stared up at the door to Red's room, before going over to the stairs and travelling up them to the bedroom. Red got up and followed him, and could hear the clicking of Doomfanger's paws on the hard wood floor behind him.

Papyrus went up to the door of the room and tried the knob, it turning all the way and opening the door. They both walked in, and Red flicked on the lights. No alternate him's in sight.

Papyrus looked around the room. "Sans? Where'd you go?"

They both heard a tiny hiccup from the closet.

Papyrus quickly approached the closet and tried to open the door, but found that he couldn't, and the endeavor prompted a cry from the terrified skeleton inside it.

Papyrus let his hand drop away from the door.

"Was it the yelling that upset you?"

No response except for some shuffling inside.

"I should not have yelled like that. I am so sorry! Please come out!"

This time they were met with total silence.

Red walked up to Papyrus and patted his back. "Boss, I know how ya feel about skeletons in the closet," he did not miss the look his brother gave him. "but maybe we should leave 'im be, fer now. Ya know? Let 'im chill out. He might come out on his own."

Papyrus stared at the closet doors and sighed. "I suppose you're right. We shouldn't force him to come out."

They both paused for a few moments, before walking away from the closet and out of the room, hoping Sans really would settle down and come out on his own.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know if you spot any typos or missing words! I tend to glaze over them when spell checking!


End file.
